Forming part of the Pacific Northwest (and the associatedCascadia bioregion), Idaho is divided into several distinct geographic and climatic regions. The state's north, the relatively isolatedIdaho Panhandle, is closely linked withEastern Washington, with which it shares thePacific Time Zone—the rest of the state uses theMountain Time Zone. The state's south includes theSnake River Plain (which has most of the population and agricultural land), and the southeast incorporates part of theGreat Basin. Idaho is quite mountainous and contains several stretches of theRocky Mountains. TheUnited States Forest Service holds about 38% of Idaho's land, the highest proportion of any state.[8]
Industries significant for the state economy include manufacturing, agriculture, mining, forestry, science and technology, and tourism. The state contains theIdaho National Laboratory, which is the country's largestDepartment of Energy facility. Idaho's agricultural sector supplies many products, but the state is best known forits potato crop, which comprises around one-third of the nationwide yield. Itsofficial state nickname is the "Gem State".[9]
In the early 1860s, when theU.S. Congress was considering organizing a new territory in theRocky Mountains, the name "Idaho" was suggested byGeorge M. Willing, a politician posing as an unrecognized delegate from the unofficialJefferson Territory.[10][failed verification] Willing claimed that the name was derived from aShoshone term meaning "the sun comes from the mountains" or "gem of the mountains",[11] but it was revealed later that there was no such term and Willing claimed that he had been inspired to coin the name when he met a little girl namedIda.[12] Since the name appeared to be fabricated, the U.S. Congress ultimately decided to name the areaColorado Territory instead when it was created in February 1861, but by the time this decision was made, the town ofIdaho Springs, Colorado had already been named after Willing's proposal.
The same year Congress created Colorado Territory, a county calledIdaho County was created in easternWashington Territory. The county was named after asteamship namedIdaho, which was launched on theColumbia River in 1860. It is unclear whether the steamship was named before or after Willing's claim was revealed. Regardless, part of Washington Territory, including Idaho County, was used to createIdaho Territory in 1863.[13] Idaho Territory would later change its boundaries to the area that became the U.S. state.[14]
Humans may have been present in the Idaho area as long as 14,500 years ago. Excavations atWilson Butte Cave nearTwin Falls in 1959 revealed evidence of human activity, including arrowheads, that rank among the oldest dated artifacts in North America.American Indian peoples predominant in the area included theNez Percé in the north and the Northern and WesternShoshone in the south.[15]
A LateUpper Paleolithic site was identified at Cooper's Ferry in western Idaho near the town ofCottonwood by archaeologists in 2019. Based on evidence found at the site, first people lived in this area 15,300 to 16,600 years ago, predating theBeringia land bridge by about a thousand years. The discoverers emphasized that they possess similarities with tools and artifacts discovered inJapan that date from 16,000 to 13,000 years ago.[15][16] The discovery also showed that the first people might not have come toNorth America by land, as previously theorized. On the contrary, they probably came through the water, using aPacific coastal route.[17]
The most parsimonious explanation we think is that people came down the Pacific Coast, and as they encountered the mouth of the Columbia River, they essentially found an off-ramp from this coastal migration and also found their first viable interior route to the areas that are south of the ice sheet.[16]
An early presence of French-Canadian trappers is visible in names andtoponyms:Nez Percé, Cœur d'Alène, Boisé, Payette. Some of these names appeared prior to theLewis and Clark andAstorian expeditions, which included significant numbers of French andMétis guides recruited for their familiarity with the terrain.[citation needed]
Idaho, as part of theOregon Country, was claimed by both the United States and Great Britain until the United States gained undisputed jurisdiction in 1846. From 1843 to 1859, present-day Idaho was under the de facto jurisdiction of theProvisional Government of Oregon. When Oregon became a state in 1859, what is now Idaho was situated in what remained of the original Oregon Territory, designated as the Washington Territory.
Between 1849 and the creation of theIdaho Territory in 1863, parts of present-day Idaho were included in theOregon,Washington, andDakota Territories. The new Idaho territory included present-day Idaho,Montana, and most ofWyoming. The Lewis and Clark expedition crossed Idaho in 1805 on the way to the Pacific, and in 1806, on the return trip, largely following theClearwater River in both directions. The first non-indigenous settlement wasKullyspell House, established on the shore ofLake Pend Oreille in 1809 byDavid Thompson of theNorth West Company for fur trading.[18][19] In 1812Donald Mackenzie, working for thePacific Fur Company at the time, established a post on the lower Clearwater River near present-day Lewiston. This post, known as "MacKenzie's Post" or "Clearwater", operated until the Pacific Fur Company was bought out by the North West Company in 1813, after which the post was abandoned.[20][21] The first organized non-indigenous communities within the present borders of Idaho were established byMormon pioneers in 1860.[22][23] The first permanent, substantialincorporated community was Lewiston, in 1861. Early in its history, Idaho saw a large influx ofChinese immigrants, who by 1870 made up about 28.5% of the territory's population.[24]
Idaho achieved statehood in 1890, following a difficult start as a territory, including the chaotic transfer of the territorial capital fromLewiston toBoise,[25]disenfranchisement ofMormonpolygamists upheld by theU.S. Supreme Court in 1890,[26] and a federal attempt to split the territory between Washington Territory, which gained statehood in 1889, a year before Idaho, and the state ofNevada which had been a state since 1864.[27]
Idaho was one of the hardest hit of thePacific Northwest states during theGreat Depression.[28] Prices plummeted for Idaho's major crops: in 1932 a bushel of potatoes brought only ten cents compared to 1919 for $1.51, while Idaho farmers saw their annual income of $686 in 1929 drop to $250 by 1932.[29]
Between 1991 and 2002, Idaho expanded its commercial base to include the science and technology sector which accounted for over 25% of itsGross state product in 2001.[30]
During theCOVID-19 pandemic, Idaho enacted statewide crisis standards of care as COVID-19 patients overwhelmed hospitals.[31] The state had one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country as of mid-October 2021.[32]
Idaho shares a border with six U.S. states and one Canadian province. The states ofWashington andOregon are to the west,Nevada andUtah are to the south, and Montana and Wyoming are to the east. Idaho also shares a short border with the Canadian province ofBritish Columbia to the north.[33]
Shoshone Falls
The landscape is rugged, with some of the largest unspoiled natural areas in the United States. For example, at 2.3 million acres (930,000 ha), theFrank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Area is the largest contiguous area of protected wilderness in the continental United States. Idaho is aRocky Mountain state with abundant natural resources and scenic areas. The state has snow-capped mountain ranges, rapids, vast lakes and steep canyons. The waters of theSnake River run throughHells Canyon, the deepest gorge in the United States.Shoshone Falls falls down cliffs from a height greater thanNiagara Falls.[34]
By far, the most important river in Idaho is the Snake River, a major tributary of the Columbia River. The Snake River flows fromYellowstone in northwesternWyoming through theSnake River Plain in southern Idaho before turning north, leaving the state atLewiston before joining the Columbia inKennewick. Other major rivers are theClark Fork/Pend Oreille River, theSpokane River, and, many major tributaries of the Snake River, including theClearwater River, theSalmon River, theBoise River, and thePayette River. The Salmon River empties into the Snake in Hells Canyon and forms the southern boundary of Nez Perce County on its north shore, of which Lewiston is the county seat. The Port ofLewiston, at the confluence of theClearwater and the Snake Rivers is the farthest inlandseaport on the West Coast at 465 river miles from the Pacific atAstoria, Oregon.[35]
The vast majority of Idaho's population lives in the Snake River Plain, a valley running from across the entirety of southern Idaho from east to west. The valley contains the major cities ofBoise,Meridian,Nampa,Caldwell,Twin Falls,Idaho Falls, andPocatello. The plain served as an easy pass through the Rocky Mountains for westward-bound settlers on theOregon Trail, and many settlers chose to settle the area rather than risking the treacherous route through theBlue Mountains and theCascade Range to the west. The western region of the plain is known as theTreasure Valley, bound between theOwyhee Mountains to the southwest and theBoise Mountains to the northeast. The central region of the Snake River Plain is known as theMagic Valley.
Salmon-Challis National Forest is located in the east central sections of the state, with Salmon National Forest to the north and Challis National Forest to the south. The forest is in an area known as the Idaho Cobalt Belt, which consists of a 34 miles (55 km) longgeological formation ofsedimentary rock that contains some of the largestcobalt deposits in the U.S.[37]
Idaho'sclimate varies widely. Although the state's western border is about 330 miles (530 km) from the Pacific Ocean, the maritime influence is still felt in Idaho; especially, in the winter when cloud cover,humidity, andprecipitation are at their maximum extent. This influence has a moderating effect in the winter where temperatures are not as low as would otherwise be expected for a northern state with predominantly high elevations.[40] In the panhandle, moist air masses from the coast are released as precipitation over theNorth Central Rockies forests, creating theNorth American inland temperate rainforest.[41] The maritime influence is least prominent in the state's eastern part where the precipitation patterns are often reversed, with wetter summers and drier winters, and seasonal temperature differences are more extreme, showing a more semi-aridcontinental climate.[42]
Idaho can be hot, although extended periods over 98 °F (37 °C) are rare, except for the lowest point in elevation,Lewiston, which correspondingly sees little snow. Hot summer days are tempered by the low relative humidity and cooler evenings during summer months since, for most of the state, the highestdiurnal difference in temperature is often in the summer.[43] Winters can be cold, although extended periods of bitter cold weather below zero are unusual. Idaho's all-time highest temperature of 118 °F (48 °C) was recorded atOrofino on July 28, 1934; the all-time lowest temperature of −60 °F (−51 °C) was recorded atIsland Park Dam on January 18, 1943.
Monthly normal high and low temperatures for various Idaho cities. (°F)
Idaho had an estimated population of 1,754,208 in 2018, which was an increase of 37,265, from the prior year and an increase of 186,626, or 11.91%, since 2010. This included a natural increase since the last census of 58,884 (111,131 births minus 52,247 deaths) and an increase due to netmigration of 75,795 people into the state. There are large numbers of Americans of English and German ancestry in Idaho.Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 14,522 people, and migration within the country produced a net increase of 61,273 people.
According to the American Immigration Council, in 2018, the top countries of origin for Idaho's immigrants were Mexico, Canada, the Philippines, China and Germany.[49]
Idaho's population increased by 17.3% from 2010 to 2020, the second fastest rate of growth of any state that decade.[50]
Nampa, about 20 miles (30 km) west of downtown Boise, became the state's second largest city in the late 1990s, passing Pocatello and Idaho Falls. Nampa's population was under 29,000 in 1990 and grew to over 81,000 by 2010. Located between Nampa and Boise, Meridian also experienced high growth, from fewer than 10,000 residents in 1990 to more than 75,000 in 2010 and is now Idaho's third largest city. Growth of 5% or more over the same period has also been observed inCaldwell,Coeur d'Alene,Post Falls, and Twin Falls.[51]
From 1990 to 2010, Idaho's population increased by over 560,000 (55%). TheBoise metropolitan area (officially known as the Boise City-Nampa, ID Metropolitan Statistical Area) is Idaho's largest. Other metropolitan areas, in order of size, areCoeur d'Alene,Idaho Falls,Pocatello andLewiston.[52]
The majority of Idaho's population is of European descent. Most of Idaho's white residents trace their ancestry to the United Kingdom, Germany, Ireland, France, Italy, or Poland. There are also small numbers of Native Americans, Asians, and African Americans in the state.[61]
There are five federally recognized Native American tribes in the state. These tribes include the Shoshone-Bannock, the Shoshone-Paiute, the Coeur d’Alene, the Kootenai and the Nez Perce.[63]
Since 2016, data for births ofWhite Hispanic origin are not collected, but included in oneHispanic group; persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.
According to thePew Research Center on Religion & Public Life, the self-identified religious affiliations of Idahoans over the age of 18 in 2008 and 2014 were:
In 2022, the Public Religion Research Institute'sAmerican Values Survey estimated altogether, 72% of the population was Christian, 26% were religiously unaffiliated, and 3% were New Agers. Of its Christian population, 37% were Protestant, 24% Mormon, 9% Catholic, and 2%Jehovah's Witnesses.
As of 2016, the state's total employment was 562,282, and the total employer establishments were 45,826.[83]
Idaho is the top potato producing state in the United States. Almost one-third of the nation’s potatoes are grown in theSnake River Plain, a belt of low-lying land that extends across southern Idaho.[84]
Important industries in Idaho are food processing, lumber and wood products, machinery, chemical products, paper products, electronics manufacturing, silver and other mining, and tourism. The world's largest factory for barrel cheese, the raw product forprocessed cheese, is inGooding, Idaho. It has a capacity of 120,000 metric tons per year of barrel cheese and belongs to theGlanbia group.[85]
As Idaho approached statehood, mining and other extractive industries became increasingly important to her economy. While Idaho's dependence on mining has decreased, the state, which produces seventy-two types of precious and semi-precious stones, is still known as "The Gem State." Idaho is a top national producer of potatoes, trout, Austrian winter peas, and lentils. Its major industries are manufacturing, agriculture, food processing, timber, and mining. Tourism is another way that Idaho capitalizes on its natural resources. The same vast tracts of unspoiled wilderness that attractedErnest Hemingway to the region in the early 1960s continue to provide outdoor enthusiasts with excellent camping, hunting, fishing, as well as whitewater kayaking and rafting, and skiing.[86]
The state personalincome tax is a flat 5.8%. Idahoans may apply for statetax credits for taxes paid to other states, as well as for donations to Idaho state educational entities and some nonprofit youth and rehabilitation facilities.[citation needed]
The statesales tax is 6% with a very limited, selective local option up to 6.5%. Sales tax applies to the sale, rental or lease of tangible personal property and some services. Food is taxed, butprescription drugs are not. Hotel,motel, andcampground accommodations are taxed at a higher rate (7% to 11%). Some jurisdictions impose local option sales tax.[89]
The sales tax was introduced at 3% in 1965, easily approved by voters,[90] where it remained at 3% until 1983.[91]
Idaho consumes almost four times more energy than it produces. In 2022, renewable energy sources accounted for 75% of the total electricity generated in the state, the fourth-highest share of renewable electricity for any state.[93] In 2022, half of Idaho's utility-scale (1 megawatt or larger) electricity generating capacity is at hydroelectric power plants, 25% from natural gas, 17% of the state's total in-state electricity net generation came from wind facilities, 4% from solar and 1% from geothermal.[94] Washington State provides most of the natural gas used in Idaho through one of the two major pipeline systems supplying the state.[citation needed]
Idaho has an upper-boundary estimate of development potential to generate 44,320 GWh/year from 18,076 MW of wind power, and 7,467,000 GWh/year fromsolar power using 2,061,000 MW of photovoltaics (PV), including 3,224 MW of rooftop photovoltaics, and 1,267,000 MW ofconcentrated solar power.[95] Idaho had 973 MW of installed wind power as of 2020.[96]
The Port of Lewiston is the farthest inland Pacific port on the west coast. A series of dams and locks on the Snake River and Columbia River facilitate barge travel from Lewiston to Portland, where goods are loaded on ocean-going vessels.[99]
The constitution of Idaho is roughly modeled on the national constitution, with several additions. The constitution defines the form and functions of the state government, and may be amended throughplebiscite. The state constitution presently requires the state government to maintain abalanced budget.[100]
All of Idaho's state laws are contained in the Idaho Code and Statutes. The code is amended through the legislature with the approval of the governor. Idaho still operates under its original (1889) state constitution.[100]
Idaho has one of thestrictest abortion laws in the nation.[101] In April 2023, Idaho became the first state to restrict interstate travel for abortion services.[102][103] Nearly all abortions are banned and private citizens can sue abortion providers. The Idaho Supreme Court has ruled there is no constitutional right to abortion. A federal judge ruled in 2022 that doctors cannot be punished for performing an abortion to protect a patient's health.[104] The state abortion laws have led to an outmigration of physicians who specialize in maternal/fetal care.[105]
The constitution of Idaho provides for three branches of government: the executive, legislative and judicial branches. Idaho has abicameral legislature, elected from 35 legislative districts, each represented by one senator and two representatives.
Last contested in 1966, Inspector of Mines was an originally elected constitutional office. Afterward it was an appointed position and ultimately done away with entirely in 1974.
The governor of Idaho serves a four-year term and is elected during what is nationally referred to as midterm elections. As such, the governor is not elected in the same election year as the president of the United States. The current governor isRepublicanBrad Little, who was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022. Idaho is 1 of 13 states with no term limits for Governor.[106]
Idaho'slegislature is part-time. Because of this, Idaho's legislators are considered "citizen legislators", meaning their position as a legislator is not their main occupation. However, the session may be extended if necessary, and often is.
Terms for both theSenate andHouse of Representatives are two years. Legislative elections occur every even numbered year.
Both of Idaho's state legislative chambers have been continuously controlled by Republicans since 1960, although Democratic legislators are routinely elected from Boise, Pocatello,Blaine County and the northern Panhandle.
The highest court in Idaho is theIdaho Supreme Court. There is also an intermediateappellate court, theIdaho Court of Appeals, which hears cases assigned to it from the Supreme Court. The state's District Courts serve seven judicial districts.[107]
After theCivil War, many Midwestern and SouthernDemocrats moved to theIdaho Territory. As a result, the early territorial legislatures were solidly Democrat-controlled. In contrast, most of the territorial governors were appointed byRepublican presidents and were Republicans. This led to sometimes-bitter clashes between the two parties, including a range war with the Democrats backing the sheepherders and the Republicans the cattlemen, which ended in the"Diamondfield" Jack Davis murder trial. In the 1880s, Republicans became more prominent in local politics.
In 1864, Clinton DeWitt Smith removed the territorial seal and the state constitution from a locked safe, and took them to Boise. This effectively moved the capital from where they were stored (Lewiston, Idaho) to the current capital, Boise.[109]
Since statehood, the Republican Party has usually been the dominant party in Idaho. At one time, Idaho had two Democratic parties, one being the mainstream and the other called the Anti-Mormon Democrats, lasting into the early 20th century. In the 1890s and early 1900s, thePopulist Party enjoyed prominence, while the Democratic Party maintained a brief dominance in the 1930s during theGreat Depression. Since World WarII, most statewide-elected officials have been Republicans, though the Democrats did hold the majority in the House (by one seat) in 1958 and the governorship from 1971 to 1995.
Idaho Congressional delegations have also been generally Republican since statehood. Several Idaho Democrats have had electoral success in theU.S. House of Representatives over the years, but theSenate delegation has been a Republican stronghold for decades. Several Idaho Republicans, including current SenatorsMike Crapo andJim Risch, have won reelection to the Senate, but onlyFrank Church has won reelection as a Democrat. Church's1974 victory was the last win for his party for either Senate seat, andWalt Minnick's 2008 victory in the1st congressional district was the last Democratic win in any congressional race.
In modern times, Idaho has been a reliably Republican state in presidential politics. It has not supported a Democrat forpresident since1964. Even in that election,Lyndon B. Johnson defeatedBarry Goldwater in the state by fewer than two percentage points, compared to a landslide nationally. In2004, RepublicanGeorge W. Bush carried Idaho by a margin of 38 percentage points and with 68.4% of the vote, winning in 43 of 44 counties. OnlyBlaine County, which contains theSun Valley ski resort, supportedJohn Kerry, who owns a home in the area. In2008Barack Obama's 36.1 percent[110] showing was the best for a Democratic presidential candidate in Idaho since1976. However, Republican margins were narrower in1992 and1976.
In the 2006 elections, Republicans, led by gubernatorial candidateButch Otter, won all the state's constitutional offices and retained both of the state's seats in the House. However, Democrats picked up several seats in the Idaho Legislature, notably in the Boise area.[111]
Republicans lost one of the House seats in 2008 to Minnick, but RepublicanJim Risch retainedLarry Craig's Senate seat for the GOP by a comfortable margin.[112] Minnick lost his seat in the 2010 election to Republican State Rep.Raul Labrador.
Idaho retains thedeath penalty. Pending the outcome of a legal challenge on a bill passed on 20 March 2023, authorized methods of execution include thefiring squad.[113]Abortion care is severely restricted in Idaho.[114]
Idaho school districts are governed by elected school boards, which are elected in November of odd-numbered years,[118] except for theBoise School District, whose elections are held in September.[119]
The Idaho State Board of Education oversees three comprehensive universities.[120] TheUniversity of Idaho inMoscow was the first university in the state (founded in 1889). It opened its doors in 1892 and is theland-grant institution and primary research university of the state.Idaho State University in Pocatello opened in 1901 as the Academy of Idaho, attained four-year status in 1947 and university status in 1963.Boise State University is the most recent school to attain university status in Idaho. The school opened in 1932 as Boise Junior College and became Boise State University in 1974.Lewis-Clark State College inLewiston is the only public, non-university four-year college in Idaho. It opened as anormal school in 1893.[121]
In October 2024, a health department in Idaho voted to stop providing Covid vaccines to residents in six counties. More than 290 people submitted comments calling for an end to vaccine mandates in the counties.[122]
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^Center for New Media and Promotions (C2PO)."2010 Census Data".Census.gov. RetrievedSeptember 4, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^"FAQs". ITD. January 24, 2007. Archived fromthe original on April 26, 2007. RetrievedApril 22, 2007.The transportation department also oversees federal grants to 15 rural and urban public transportation systems, provides state rail planning and rail-project development and supports bicycle and pedestrian projects.
^"Charter School List"(PDF).sde.idaho.gov. Idaho State Department of Education. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on January 21, 2020. RetrievedJanuary 21, 2020.
^Engber, Daniel (February 21, 2014)."Who Made That Ski Lift?".The New York Times.Archived from the original on July 17, 2016. RetrievedDecember 19, 2015.
^"Eastwood film gives boost".Spokane Chronicle. Washington. Associated Press. November 30, 1984. p. 12.Archived from the original on April 11, 2016. RetrievedJanuary 15, 2019.
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^Greenberg, Harvey (Fall 1992). "My Own Private Idaho".Film Quarterly.
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Schwantes, Carlos A.The Pacific Northwest: an interpretive history (U of Nebraska Press, 1996).
Sims, Robert C.; Hope A. Benedict (1992).Idaho's Governors. Boise, Idaho: College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs, Boise State University.ISBN0-932129-13-7.
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